While many NHL insiders are shocked coach Andy Murray still is behind the bench, the Blues have waited so long to fire him that they missed out on the best coach available -- Peter Laviolette -- so now the word is they are eyeing the possibility of trying to make a blockbuster deal.

Sure, the Blues might be dreaming, but there are whispers in league circles they might make a pitch to land struggling Hurricanes centre Eric Staal, who went into last night's game against the Senators with only four goals and 10 assists in 21 games.

Sad numbers for a guy who is scheduled to make an average of $8.25 million US a season through 2015-16.

Still, it's hard to believe the Hurricanes would give up on the player who all but willed the team into the Eastern Conference final last spring.

"He could be just having a bad season, (but) this is a guy who could do no wrong last year," a league executive said.

Of course, if you are the Blues, it never hurts to ask.

Plus, St. Louis does have young assets like defenceman Alex Pietrangelo, winger David Perron and 2007 No. 1 pick Ian Cole, a blueliner at Notre Dame, to offer up if Carolina wants to deal.

If the Hurricanes were to trade Staal, if would just about ensure they finish dead last -- where they sit now -- and give them a great shot at landing the No. 1 overall pick in next June's draft.

Off the glass

Panthers GM Randy Sexton has been trying to move goalie Tomas Vokoun. The issue is Vokoun has a cap hit of $5.7 million for the next two seasons and hasn't lived up to expectations. Then again, neither have the Panthers. Sexton is going to get some heat from the new ownership group if this club misses the playoffs ... Blue Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock was given a vote of confidence by GM Scott Howson last week. That comes as no surprise, but the talk is the Columbus players are getting tired of Hitchcock's act.

Around the boards

Hold off on celebrating the sale of the Coyotes to Ice Edge Holdings. A league executive said NHL governors have concerns about the group's financing and commissioner Gary Bettman is going to be facing tough questions at meetings in Pebble Beach, Calif., next week. Since the league bought the club out of bankruptcy for $148 million, Ice Edge is going to have to make sure it shells out at least that much for the franchise and sources say owners want to see what kind of backing the group has. It's believed the governors also are going to want to discuss the stability of the Stars and the Lightning. Neither franchise is considered to be in good financial shape.

Rumours du jour

The Flyers are looking for a goalie. With Ray Emery sidelined for six weeks following abdominal surgery, Philadelphia GM Paul Holmgren has been keeping close tabs on Dallas' Marty Turco, who can become an unrestricted free agent next summer. Turco had a 10-6-7 record, with a 2.45 GAA and a .917 save percentage heading into last night. With the Stars sitting in the eighth and final playoff spot in the West, trading Turco would not make sense right now. The Stars have been following the Flyers closely and GM Joe Nieuwendyk has been scouring the NHL looking for a top-six forward. Philly is willing to deal centre Danny Briere, but he has a no-movement clause. Underachieving centre Jeff Carter is another name that's begun to pop up in trade rumours involving Philly. While Holmgren made the bold move of firing coach John Stevens and replacing him with Laviolette only a week ago, the indications are the Flyers have been doing a lot of talking to see if a deal can be made before next Saturday's Christmas roster freeze ... A league source said Leafs GM Brian Burke expressed an interest in Phoenix forward Peter Mueller but didn't have the right assets to strike a deal. Mueller, 21, who has just one goal and five assists in 26 games this season, was the Coyotes' No. 1 choice in the 2006 draft.